EC News DeskAfter touring the Middle East and APAC regions, the World CIO 200 Roadshow 2020 reached Africa on December 4. This edition of the roadshow unfolded in a virtual convention and brought together digital leaders in the region.
Key takeaways from the Africa edition
The Africa edition included presentations by regional experts as well as an engaging panel discussion. The sessions resulted in some interesting insights and takeaways.
- People and their knowledge are an organisation’s most valuable assets. To transform human leadership, the leader must possess skills such as innovative mindset, creativity, humility and authenticity, be strategic and purposeful, to mention a few. Investing in upskilling of people is a key component of digital transformation for any organisation. Making your leaders agile is the way to human leadership transformation.
- Technology transformation requires strong leadership to drive change. But it also requires a vision for what parts of the company you want to transform. Companies in all industries and regions are experimenting with — and benefiting from — technology transformation. Whether it is in the way individuals work and collaborate, the way business processes are executed within and across organisational boundaries, or in the way a company understands and serves customers, digital technology provides a wealth of opportunities.
- Essentially preparing the leadership mindset to embrace digital transformation will be a determining factor in the pace at which organizations will transform. We are in the age of technology, AI, crypto currency, blockchain, automation and a lot will be expected in these area for transformation in 2021 post pandemic.
The agenda
| Session | Presented by |
| World CIO 200 Country Opening Keynote | Kwaku A Ofosuhene, Head of Operation, GEC Media Group ( West Africa) |
| Pulse Secure – Secure Access Solutions and Business Continuities | Mohammad Amin Soody, Territory Sales Manager, MEA, Pulse Secure |
| 2021 – Outlook on Human Leadership Transformation | Otema Yirenkyi – Vice President, Global Engagement PMI Africa region |
| 2021- Outlook on Technology Transformation | Dr Samuel Senyo Okae, Head of IT, The Ghana Deposit Protection Corporation |
| Cross-border panel: Leadership in the post-pandemic world -the outlook of technology in Africa | Ghana ( Mariam A-Buahin, Brand, Marketing and Fintech Professional, Ghana) |
| Egypt (Wissam Al Adany, Chief Information Officer – Ghabbour Auto ) | |
| India (Anand Sinha, CIO & Director IT – OCS Group India) | |
| Mauritius (Arvind Kureeman, Senior Analytics Manager – International Economics Consulting Ltd ) | |
| 2021- Outlook on Business Transformation | Nelson Da Seglah – Chief Enabling Officer, Halges |
| 2021 – Outlook on Human Leadership and Technology Transformation | Ethel Cofie – CEO and Founder of EDEL Technology Consulting |
| CIO 200 Country Awards | Awards ceremony |
| Closing Note | Global CIO Forum |
And the winners are
The final highlight of the Africa session was the CIO 200 Country Awards, given to CIOs who have been the catalyst in bringing about change in this challenging year. The winners also received blockchain certificates.
| Country | Winner | Organisation | Designation | Winning category |
| Egypt | Hossam Barakat | Egypt Gas | GM | Oil or Gas |
| Egypt | Tharwat Soliman | AUDIO | IT Manager | Retail Wholesale or Distribution |
| Egypt | Yehia Elshayeb | Mountainview | IT Director | Real Estate |
| Egypt | Mohamed Hamed | Ceramica Platino Group | CIO | Manufacturing |
| Egypt | ADEL ABO ELNOUR | Ministry of Housing | Eng. | Government |
| Egypt | Wissam Al Adany | Ghabbour Auto | Chief Information Officer | Manufacturing |
| Ghana | Samuel Okoe | Ghana Deposit Protection Corporation | Head of IT | Financial Services (e.g. Banking |
| Ghana | LEOPOLD ARMAH | GUARANTY TRUST BANK (GHANA) LIMITED | DIVISIONAL HEAD, DIGITAL BANKING AND ALLIANCES | Financial Services (e.g. Banking |
| Kenya | Stanley Chege | Madison Group | Chief Information Officer | Insurance |
| Mauritius | Roshan Koonja | Constance Hotels | Chief Information Officer | Hospitality |
| Ghana | Mentor Gandhi Pierre-Henri | NGO Golden Bridge Ghana GBG | MR | Nonprofit |
| Nigeria | Santosh Uadav | Deekay Group | Group Head IT | Manufacturing |
| Egypt | Tarek El-Sherif | ABK-E | Head of Information Security | Financial Services (e.g. Banking |
| Ghana | Nelson Da-Seglah | Halges Financial Technologies (Trading as Korba) | Chief Enabling Officer | Financial Services (e.g. Banking |
| South Africa | Fred Swanepoel | Nedbank Group Ltd. | Chief Information Officer (CIO) | Financial Services (e.g. Banking |
| Ghana | Sylvester, Apedoe | Universal Merchant Bank | Head / IT | Financial Services (e.g. Banking |
About CIO 200 Summit
Established in 2017, The CIO 200 Summit is a multi-country CIO felicitation ceremony that recognises achievements of digital leaders. The CIO 200 Awards are not a competition but a celebration of the amazing lives of CIOs and their game-changing careers.
The 2019 edition of the event toured 15 countries and gathered over 3000+ delegates over a span of three months. Key stakeholders tabled roadmaps for strategic decision making and identified yardsticks that are the key drivers of growth in the digital world. The World CIO 200 Summit 2019 concluded over December 09-10 with a gala event at the Double Tree Hilton in Ras Al Khaimah. The highlights from the 2019 edition can be seen here.
About Global CIO Forum
The role of a CIO is one of the most critical one in today’s business and industry. Today, CIOs hold the future of innovation, productivity and competitiveness in their hands. At the Global CIO Forum, we not only provide our members with an exchange forum for best IT leadership strategies and practices to enhance business results, but we are also developing a strong voice to ensure that CIOs are represented at key industry and government decision tables. In other words: Integrate. Influence. Impact.
The Global CIO Forum’s mission is to represents IT Executives and CIOs globally. Currently working in META region and with expansion plans globally, the Global CIO Forum is a non-profit community of CIOs and IT leaders whose mission is to facilitate networking, sharing of best practices and executive development, and to collaborate on issues faced by the CIOs and IT executives.
